Casa Loma Orchestra: 1929/1932

On the first of two Casa Loma LPs from the collector's Harrison label, 15 of the pioneering swing big band's early recordings are reissued; many have not reappeared since. After the original version of "Smoke Rings," there are a variety of titles from 1929-32. Kenny Sargent takes four vocals, and there are spots for the singing of Pee Wee Hunt, Jack Richmond and Ray Eberle (eight years before he joined Glenn Miller's Orchestra), but it is the instrumentals that are of greatest interest, especially "Happy Days Are Here Again," "Clarinet Marmalade" and a rare version of "Casa Loma Stomp" that was originally released as a publicity record.